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Learning to dislike alcohol: conditioning negative implicit attitudes toward alcohol and its effect on drinking
Katrijn Houben1, Remco C Havermans, Reinout W Wiers
1Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, P. O. Box 616, 6200 MD, Maastricht, The Netherlands. K.Houben@maastrichtuniversity.nl
Psychopharmacology
|May 1, 2010
Summary
Evaluative conditioning effectively changed implicit attitudes toward alcohol, leading to reduced alcohol consumption. This method shows promise as an intervention tool for combating alcohol misuse.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Behavioral Science
- Addiction Research
Background:
- Implicit attitudes towards alcohol significantly influence drinking behavior.
- Modifying these implicit attitudes presents a potential pathway for behavioral change.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the efficacy of evaluative conditioning in altering implicit attitudes towards alcohol.
- To determine if this conditioning can lead to changes in actual drinking behavior.
Main Methods:
- Random assignment to experimental (alcohol cues paired with negative stimuli) and control (alcohol cues paired with neutral stimuli) groups.
- Pre- and post-intervention assessments of implicit attitudes, explicit attitudes, and alcohol consumption.
- Utilized general negative pictures and frowning faces as negative stimuli in the experimental condition.
Main Results:
- The experimental group demonstrated a significant decrease in implicit positive attitudes toward alcohol.
- Participants in the experimental group showed reduced alcohol consumption compared to the control group.
- The effect on implicit attitudes and behavior was observed only when negative general pictures were used, not frowning faces.
Conclusions:
- Evaluative conditioning is a viable method for modifying implicit attitudes concerning alcohol.
- This technique can be successfully applied to alter drinking behavior.
- Evaluative conditioning offers a novel intervention strategy for addressing alcohol misuse.
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